For Every Winner, There Are Many, Many Losers

Wisconsin news was filled recently when a young man from West Allis won the largest Powerball jackpot in our state’s lottery history. Admittedly, the $326 million after-taxes purse will be life-changing for the winner; but the lottery is much more

about creating losers than winners. Consider, for instance, that the largest number of scratch-off tickets in Wisconsin are sold in the zip codes with the highest poverty rates and highest welfare dependency. For every winner, there are many, many losers, a situation fostered by state-sanctioned gambling.

Julaine Appling, WFA president, shares, “I sincerely wish this winner well. However, I believe the lottery is a blight on our state. It’s hard to imagine that we think it’s good governing to have a scheme that requires the citizens to lose in order for the state to win. For starters, we need to stop preying on those who can least afford to gamble and quit the heavy lottery advertising, which is unconstitutional, in those high-poverty zip code areas.”